The Fittest
by Mochan
Summary: Soujiro and Shishio years ago


The Fittest  
A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfiction  
Original Flavor  
Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin was created by Nobuhiro Watsuki  
---  
  
Sping, Meiji 2 (1870)  
  
The canopy of leaves blocked the sunlight from high overhead, coloring the grass  
with a spiderweb pattern of shadows. As we walked along beneath it, the rustic scents of  
the forest filled our senses. I took in the earthy smeel of the ground beneath us, a reminder  
of hte rain from last night. Last night, when I left home forever.  
  
The night before, I had left in the darkness, the rain pouring down on my head,  
drenching my clothes with a numbing chill. The flowing water ran across the length of the  
sword he had given me, washing away the blood....  
  
Shishio-san was a strong person. I was happy to be able to travel with him. The  
small sword at my side was the reminder of last night, when he agreed to let me come with  
him. As I looked up at him, travelling silghtly in front of me and to my side, I could not  
help but smile in admiration at the thought of his power. The now familiar bandages   
which wrapped his whole body fluttered in the breeze, still damp from last night's deluge.  
Shishio-san had been burned badly by the Ishin government, and it left his body a  
charred, gruesome mass. Because of those burns, he was always in pain, but he said that  
he was stronger because of it. I also didn't doubt that if I stayed with Shishio-san, I would  
grow to be strong, just like him.  
  
"Ne, Shishio-san," I began timidly, "when do we eat?"  
  
"What's the matter?" he asked. "Are you hungry already, Soujiro? Alright, it's  
almost noon anyway. We still have some rice from your house, no?"  
  
"Hai, Shishio-san!" The smile on my face shone even brighter at the thought of  
eating.  
  
We settled down under the shadow of some large tree. I took out some of the  
rice balls from my pack, setting them down on a cloth before us. Shishio-san quickly  
grabbed one of the balls and raised it to his mouth, taking quick, large bites. I stared at  
him for a while, and just as I was about to grab a rice ball for myself, he spoke.  
  
"What is it, Soujiro?" he asked, still chewing on his last bite.  
  
"Ah, it's nothing, Shishio-san. I was just remembering the time when I first met   
you."  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"It was just like this, when I brought you those bandages and some rice balls in  
my family's granary."  
  
My family had been the owners of a prosperous rice business. Shishio-san had  
been on the run that night, when I was carrying some sacks of rice to one of the   
warehouses. I was watching when he had killed some policemen. I just watched, as he   
menaced over me, ready to kill me with his huge sword, still dripping in blood. I thought  
I was going to die. No, I was eager to die. Anything was better than that life I had  
known. Instead of killing me, Shishio-san asked me to bring him some food and   
bandages. I hid him in the granary, where we sat just like we were sitting now.  
  
"So it was," Shishio-san muttered absently, finishing off his rice ball. He reached  
out for a second.  
  
I took a bite from my rice ball, savoring the slightly sour flavor. Shishio-san   
didn't speak most of the time; he didn't really have much to say. "They all got really mad  
when they figured out I was hiding you," I laughed, trying to make some conversation.  
  
Shishio-san took a few bites before answering. "So you handled them."  
  
"Uh, yes," I said, not sure what to say next. Indeed, I took care of them. I showed  
them that I was stronger. If I stayed with Shishio-san, I would become stronger still.  
  
My thoughts were disrupted by a red blur off to my side.  
  
"Heh, what was that?" I quickly tracked the blur with my eyes, scrambling to see  
what had caught my attention.  
  
Shishio-san just hummed in response.  
  
I saw it clearly, standing there, flitting its nozzle-like head about. A fox, its red  
pelt shimmering in the noon-time sun. As I looked closely at it, I saw a few unusual  
things about this fox. Most foxes were sleek and delicate-looking, with a fine bone  
structure and graceful form. Thsi fox, however, appeared rather stocky, with a big bushy  
tail almost the size of its already chunky form. But the most unusual thing about this fox  
was the thick, heavy mat of fur atop its eyes, which gave it an illusion of having   
eyebrows.  
  
As I stood there, examining it, it turned to look at me. Its strange, canine face  
regarded me, those thick eyebrows contorting into a strange expression as it stared into  
my eyes. It seemed to be asking, "What do you want?"  
  
I made no move, simply admired this strange-looking creature. Seeing as no  
answer was forthcoming, it lost interest in me, and began pawing the ground nearby.  
After a while, it lumbered from the clearing into the undergrowth.  
  
"Wai!" a cry of delight escaped my liips as I padded after it, my lunch summarily  
forgotten.  
  
"Don't go off too far, Soujiro," Shishio-san called at my back, almost like an  
afterthought.  
  
The fox wasn't moving particularly fast, and so I felt no need to press the chase. I  
didn't really want to catch it, I just wanted to watch it. I'd never seen such a curious  
creature.  
  
Abruptly, it stopped from its lumbering walk, and it sniffed the air wtih an   
upraised snout. Seemingly satisfied, it began pawing at the ground again. Wondering  
what it was up to, I crouched down, watching contentedly. After a few moments, it  
seemed to find what it was looking for.  
  
Near the base of the tree, a small hollow was dug near the roots. With renewed  
gusto, the fox tapped at the sides of the burrow, causing the loose earth to collapse. It dug  
its paw into the hole, enlarging it, smashing the sides, agitating the ground around it.  
  
Suddenly, a small ground squirrel popped out of the burrow, apparently panicked  
by the fox's ministrations. It skidded out of the hole in terror, only to have that terror   
multiplied ten-fold at the site of the fox's uncanny visage.  
  
As the squirrel darted away, the fox suddenly sprang into action, its previously  
shambling gait suddenly replaced with feral grace. I watched, transfixed, as the fox  
jumped around, badgered the squirrel, chased it around as if playing a game.  
  
"Are you still watching that thing, Soujiro?"  
  
I momentarily tore my gaze from the spectacle and saw the familiar tattered  
bandages beside me. "Unm," I nodded. I looked back to see the squirrel dashing around  
frantically, trying to escape. The fox, however, was every bit as nimble, and it easily kept  
on the rodent's tail, almost like the squirrel's own shadow.  
  
"Say, Shishio-san, what is it doing?" I wondered.  
  
"A skillful hunter knows not to strike immediately," Shishio-san explained. "It  
will tire out its prey before landing the final blow."  
  
"Heeeeh...."  
  
The image of the squirrel, dashing about in terror, vainly trying to escape the  
fox's merciless attacks felt disheartening. Suddenly, I gripped the sword at my side, and  
the voices of the night before came back.  
  
A woman screams.  
  
"Brother!!!"  
  
"What have you done, you little brat?"  
  
"First you hide a killer in the house, and then this? Is this how you repay us?!"  
  
"You prick, we'll kill you!"  
  
A flash of lightning illumines a small blade, dripping with blood. On the   
floor lies the body of a deadman. My cousin.  
  
I snapped my gaze back to the squirrel. It seemed to be tiring. The sword,  
in its saya, trembled in my grasp. The knuckles of my hand whitened. Shishio-san simply  
looked on, an impassive look in his darkened eyes.  
  
I grasped the hilt of my sword with my other hand, and immediately, I wondered  
what I was doing. I didn't want to strike the fox down. No, I wanted, I wanted... I wanted  
to give my sword to that squirrel!   
  
I took a step forward and began to draw my sword. Before I could, a bandaged  
hand covered my small hands, and I looked up to see's face. His eyes lit with an intensity  
not there moments before.  
  
"Watch," he commanded.  
  
The fox pounced again, and the squirrel was beginning to tire out. Being herded in  
a corner, over and over, had taken its toll on the little rodent.  
  
"Hey, isn't that fox cruel, Shishio-san?" I asked.  
  
He simply looked down at me, his hand still on mine.  
  
"Do you really believe that?"  
  
The image of the fox, darting, pouncing, harassing the squirrel was a familiar  
sight. Far too familiar. I thought of my cousins, my uncles, my grandfather. And I  
remembered something. Something I didn't want to remember. And I began to smile.  
  
Seeing me smile, Shishio-san took his hand from mine. A small smile crept onto  
his lips as well, and he left me in the clearing as he munched on another rice ball.  
  
The fox suddenly jumped one last jump, and the squirrel was buried underneath  
its paw. The fox whacked it once more for good measure, and seeing the rodent motionless,  
it began to tear at the tender meat with its long snout.  
  
As it took its first bite, it looked up at me, its strange eyebrows giving it an almost  
human appearance. Its eyes bored into mine, and once again its face contorted into a  
strange expression. I knew what it was saying.  
  
"What's so cruel about eating lunch?" 


End file.
